(FORTUNE Magazine) – TECH DATA No. 110

Up 354 places from No. 464 in 1995

Tech Data has risen faster on the FORTUNE 500 than any other company, by doing a dull thing well. The second-largest U.S. computer wholesaler (after Ingram, No. 76), it has outsmarted rivals by keeping expenses and debt low. Boom or bust, smart management never goes out of style.

PROGRESSIVE No. 155

Up 310 places from No. 465 in 1995

Car insurance was a staid affair until 1965, when CEO Peter Lewis arrived on the scene. With a plan to create "customer delight," Lewis injected the industry with new ideas that are now standard, like 24-hour claims reporting and comparison shopping. Drivers loved it. Profits surged.

DELL No. 28

Up 302 places from No. 330 in 1995

No surprise here: Dell's streamlined distribution and creative efficiencies have proved a durable engine for growth. Rivals have not been able to keep up, enabling Dell to build market share.

HEALTH NET No. 185

Up 296 places from No. 481 in 1995

One of California's biggest health insurers, Health Net stayed ahead of rising medical costs by raising premiums even faster. Customers didn't flee, and the HMO expanded its base by selling relatively inexpensive plans to employers.

BEST BUY No. 77

Up 296 places from No. 373 in 1995

Best Buy knows what its customers crave: cool gadgets. So it stocks them promptly, prices them low--and offers installation too. Thanks to this overlapping blend of goods and services, Best Buy has been able to expand its niche in an incredibly competitive retail marketplace.

COMPUTER SCIENCES No. 142

Up 294 places from No. 436 in 1995

Outsourcing is popular these days, and so therefore is Computer Sciences. The company, which specializes in IT consulting, counts the Defense Department among its big clients. Its savvy lies in knowing how to make its clients' lives easier--and not just with computers. It can also handle payroll, credit checking, even customer call centers. Last year it won $17.2 billion in new business.

BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY No. 12

Up 283 places from No. 295 in 1995

Doesn't it seem as if the Sage of Omaha's company has been really big for a really long time? It hasn't. Since the 1995 list, Berkshire's revenues have grown from $3.8 billion to $74.4 billion; its interests range from paints to chicken parts. Two big buys: General Re in 1998 and the utility MidAmerican Energy in 1999.

FIRST DATA No. 223

Up 276 places from No. 499 in 1995

The less people use cash, the more First Data cashes in. First Data acts as a middleman for credit- and debit-card transactions. The key to its success: focusing on what it does well. The company dropped lackluster ventures in health services and telemarketing, gambling instead that paying with plastic was the wave of the future.

UNITEDHEALTH GROUP No. 40

Up 263 places from No. 303 in 1995

Another HMO (like Health Net), United has more than 55 million people signed up, selling itself as patient friendly. In 1996 it began to allow members to see specialists without a referral.

WILLIAMS No. 165

Up 257 places from No. 422 in 1995

Williams has had a rough patch, watching its stock price fall below a dollar in 2002 and undergoing a recent restructuring. Over the past decade, though, the natural gas company has ridden America's dash for gas and made a few key acquisitions to become a big player. It operates 14,600 miles of pipelines in the U.S.